Oceania's Capitals: Complete Guide
All 14 Oceanian capitals — the fewest of any continent and the ones most players miss, from Canberra and Wellington to Ngerulmud and Funafuti.
Oceania's Capitals: A Complete Reference
Oceania has only 14 countries in this quiz — the fewest of any continent — but it is where most players lose their streak. Beyond Canberra and Wellington, the region is made up of small Pacific island nations whose capitals rarely appear in the news: Ngerulmud, Funafuti, Palikir, South Tarawa. Learn these fourteen and you have covered an entire continent in an afternoon.
Australia and New Zealand
| Country | Capital | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|
| Australia | Canberra | Not Sydney or Melbourne |
| New Zealand | Wellington | Not Auckland, which is larger |
Canberra is possibly the most famous "wrong answer" in geography. Sydney and Melbourne both wanted to be the capital when Australia federated, so in 1908 a site roughly between them was chosen instead, and the purpose-built city was inaugurated in 1913. Wellington is the southernmost national capital in the world — and, thanks to its position in the Cook Strait wind funnel, one of the windiest cities anywhere.
Melanesia
| Country | Capital | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|
| Papua New Guinea | Port Moresby | — |
| Fiji | Suva | — |
| Solomon Islands | Honiara | — |
| Vanuatu | Port Vila | Don't confuse with Port Moresby |
Papua New Guinea is the most linguistically diverse country on Earth, with more than 800 living languages — around an eighth of all the languages spoken in the world, in a country of roughly ten million people. Its capital, Port Moresby, is the largest city in the Pacific Islands.
Micronesia
| Country | Capital | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|
| Federated States of Micronesia | Palikir | Region and country share a name |
| Palau | Ngerulmud | Least populous capital in the world |
| Marshall Islands | Majuro | — |
| Kiribati | South Tarawa | Note "South" |
| Nauru | Yaren | No official capital; Yaren is the de facto seat |
Ngerulmud is the least populous national capital on the planet — a purpose-built government complex on the island of Babeldaob with only a few hundred residents. Palau moved its government there from Koror in 2006.
Nauru is the only country in the world with no official capital. Government offices sit in the Yaren district, which is why it is listed as the capital by convention. Nauru is also the third smallest country on Earth by area, after Vatican City and Monaco.
Kiribati is a geographical oddity: it straddles both the equator and the 180th meridian, making it the only country to sit in all four hemispheres at once. Its capital, South Tarawa, is a narrow strip of coral atoll a few hundred metres wide in places.
Polynesia
| Country | Capital | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|
| Samoa | Apia | — |
| Tonga | Nuku'alofa | Note the apostrophe |
| Tuvalu | Funafuti | — |
Tuvalu is one of the smallest and least visited countries in the world, and it earns a meaningful share of national income from an unlikely source: licensing its .tv internet domain. Tonga is the only Pacific island nation never formally colonised — it has been a monarchy continuously for over a thousand years.
The Five That Decide Your Score
If you want to beat most players on the Oceania round, the five that matter are Ngerulmud (Palau), Palikir (Micronesia), Funafuti (Tuvalu), South Tarawa (Kiribati) and Yaren (Nauru). Almost everyone knows Canberra and Wellington; almost nobody gets all five of these. Because Oceania only has 14 countries, learning them is the fastest way to add a whole continent to your accuracy.
Test Your Oceanian Capitals
Use the Oceania filter in the quiz to play through only Oceanian countries — with or without flag hints. At 14 questions it is the quickest full round on the site.